Tony Annese has won everywhere he has been.
Four high schools, Grand Rapids Community College and the last 11 years at Ferris State.
"This is just mind boggling for me," Annese said. "If somebody said 'hey, you are going to be in one National Championship game,' I would be shocked."
Yet, Ferris State is playing in the title game for the third time in the last four seasons that a championship game was held.
"I get emotional watching teams of the past," Annese said. "Let's just say it was Pittsburg State winning a National Championship back in the mid 90s, or Grand Valley, or Northwest Missouri State. I got emotional watching the trophy presentation more so than I got emotional last year getting that trophy. It sometimes is like an out of body experience where at sometime in my life I'm going to look back and say, wow!"
In 35 years as a head coach, a pretty good argument could be made that this season has been Annese's best coaching job.
"We have 15, either seniors or guys on our team who aren't playing through injury, 15 guys on offense alone that played last year that aren't playing on Saturday. I'm just feeling great that our guys have been able to do it."
We asked the current Bulldogs what makes their head coach so good at what he does.
"I don't know, he just knows how to make everybody fall in line between the plans," junior slot receiver C.J. Jefferson said. "Everybody just wants to come out and execute so we come out and execute."
"It is just that he wants it so bad, "freshman quarterback Carson Gulker said. "When we see that he wants it so bad that makes everyone else here want it bad to."
"Being a guy that transferred here, that was at a different program, it's unique," senior cornerback Sidney McCloud said. "It is something that I feel like is a blessing in my life, being brought to coach Annese and being able to join a winning program like this. You go from being in situations where you never won much and come here and have this much success."
While coach Annese is currently hard at work in McKinney trying to find a way to beat Mines on Saturday, he is doing what he loves.
"The fun for me is just being with the guys," Annese said. "I feel like I am still a college student hanging out with my guys and so that's really fun, really fun."
